Battle cry of the U.S. Marine Corps / MON 12-29-25 / 1996 #1 hit for the Spice Girls / Where Shrek lives / Tin Man's need

Constructor: Chase Dittrich

Relative difficulty: Challenging (solving Downs-only—a nearly impossible Downs-only solve for me, because of one "word")

THEME: THE TOTAL PACKAGE (63A: Description for an ideal partner ... or what the ends of 17-, 27-, 39- and 47-Across create? — elements of a package

Theme answers:

• WORKS FOR PEANUTS (17A: Is severely underpaid)
• RECORD LABEL (27A: Motown or RCA)
• JURY BOX (39A: Seating area for 12 peers)
• BOOKS ON TAPE (47A: Works that are heard rather than read)

Word of the Day: OORAH (3D: Battle cry of the U.S. Marine Corps) —

Oorah is a battle cry common in the United States Marine Corps since the mid-20th century.

Several anecdotes attributed the phrase to John R. Massaro's time as a gunnery sergeant in the Reconnaissance Company, 1st Marine Division, in the mid-1950s. Massaro (who later became sergeant major of the Marine Corps) and other Marines who trained aboard the submarine USS Perch, beginning in 1949, used oorah in imitation of the vessel's klaxon horn (which sounded like arrugha). Others have attributed the phrase's popularization to Massaro's subsequent time at Marine Corps Recruit Depot San Diego, where use of the word spread.

Massaro has said that he did not originate the word (saying in 2015: "It was a phrase or a term originally coming from boarding a ship") and that the word was already in use in 1949. (wikipedia)

• • •

A very dull theme, but that's not the worst thing happening here. The worst thing is OORAH. I thought I was losing my mind. How is it Monday and yet there's a word I've never seen, or heard of, in the puzzle. I use the word "word" loosely. "OORAH!" has never, not once, not ever, appeared in the NYTXW before. If I had encountered this "word" on a Saturday, I'd've been befuddled, but at least I would've thought "hey, it's Saturday, sometimes they throw new stuff at you on a Saturday." On a Monday, however, that answer just feels perverse. It makes absolutely no sense to opt for "OORAH!" over NORAH or TORAH there. What purpose is being served? Why would you do that? It demonstrates the worst kind of aesthetic judgment. It's show-offy in the dumbest possible way. I've talked about how "Not All Debuts Are Good." Well, "OORAH" is the epitome of that proposition. If its appearance had been born out of desperation—perhaps as a result of a dense theme that forced an inventive answer—I might've understood. If something bright or good or original or colorful were being propped up by "OORAH!," that might've made it somewhat more tolerable. But as is, this is a puzzle with a mediocre theme and fairly meh fill. GAIA CERA ERMA ECRU OER ELS ... it's not like this puzzle is being "inventive" or "creative" anywhere else in the grid. So opting for "OORAH!"—a term that looks like nonsense if you aren't familiar with it—when NORAH is sitting right there? Or the TORAH, for (literally) God's sake!? Pardon my French, but that's stupid. A terrible call. Inexcusable. 

I actually "got" OORAH, but only because I entered those "O"s as a kind of joke—I was guessing, going off of the OORAH's aural similarity to that other military exclamation, "HOO-AH" (or however you say it). Looking it up, it seems HOOAH is Army and OORAH is Marines and HOOYAH is Navy and it's all Greek to me.  (You can read about the distinctions among those terms here.)  Before today, literally none of these expressions had ever appeared in the NYTXW. Again, it is Monday. Just tear that whole corner out and start over. Resorting to OORAH is a massive distraction. I don't really remember anything else about this puzzle. If OORAH isn't a massive outlier today in terms of general solver familiarity, I'll be surprised. Stunned, in fact. You wanna get cute with OORAH, your puzzle's gotta be a hell of a lot better than this.

When I saw PEANUTS at the end of one of the themers, I was kinda hoping there'd be a comic strip theme today, but alas, no. Just ... parts of a package. It's a pretty dull concept, but it might've at least had some seasonal relevance if it had run before 12/25. Running it on the Monday after Christmas... again, inexplicable. OORAH wasn't my only struggle point today, just the most nearly fatal one. You can see from this snapshot of my Downs-only solve (taken mid-solve) that I was having real trouble getting the grid to coalesce:

WAIL instead of BAWL (1D: Cry like a baby). AVID instead of AGOG (6D: Really eager). NYLON instead of RAYON (29D: Synthetic fiber). So weird to get all the way to the revealer at the bottom of the grid before getting even a single themer. You can see how NYLON (wrong) caused me to infer SECOND as the first word of that second themer, which got me even more mired. But after getting the revealer, I methodically worked my way back up the grid, filling in empty patches, fixing errors. Until I ended up here:

And that was it. Done. Nowhere to go. Nothing to do but guess. When I look at how blah the rest of this grid, I just get angrier at OORAH. Why not take that "creative" impulse and put it to use cleaning up the rest of the damned grid!? REA? OH RATS? This is what you're serving up? You haven't earned the right to throw an OORAH at anyone. [OK, I have now watched my wife solve this puzzle Downs-only and whaddyaknow!!? She crashed out in exactly the same place—same two squares; I feel at least mildly vindicated. Her: "They could've just made it NORAH." Me: "I KNOW!"].

[Katabasis!]

Bullets:

• 9A: Where Shrek lives (SWAMP) — if I'd been looking at Across clues, I wouldn't have known what to do with this clue. I think I saw one of the Shrek movies once, whenever it originally came out. If I ever read the William Steig book, I forgot the plot. I would've been looking for a specific place here, like CAIRO or MIAMI or OWEGO (winking at my fellow central New Yorkers here).
• 35A: Stephen of "V for Vendetta" (REA) — crosswords have made this guy more famous than movies ever did. See also singer Chris REA (see video, above). I guess either one is better than [Mens ___], but not by much. Looks like REA also (rarely) gets clued as part of FDR's New Deal Alphabet Soup (in this case, the Rural Electrification Act). When you go back to pre-Shortz puzzles, REA clues descend into chaos. [Penn Station builder]? [John ___ Neill, "Oz" illustrator]!? At one point the most popular REA was [Cartoonist Gardner ___]. Looks like he was an "old New Yorker cartoonist," per the last time he was in the puzzle (1999). Wait, there's also [___ Irvin, who designed the first cover for the New Yorker] (what is with the name REA and cartoonist/illustrators!?!?). Also (once), [Peggy of "The Dukes of Hazzard"] (!??!?!). But mostly, since I've been solving, it's been Stephen ___ and Mens ___.
• 45A: Tin Man's need (OIL) — saw this just now for the first time (since it's an Across clue) and thought, "a HEART!" 

• 10D: 1996 #1 hit for the Spice Girls ("WANNABE") — if OORAH didn't get you, Downs-only solvers, then "WANNABE" might have. I was humming the damn song in my head but couldn't remember the name. "Oh, yeah, it's the tell me what you want, what you really really want song! ... 'TELL ME?'"

Some more 🌲🐈Holiday Pet Pics🐕🌲 now! Note: PLEASE DO NOT SEND ME ANY MORE PET PICS, I'M ALL FULL UP FOR THIS YEAR, thank you.

Here's Buzz and Kirby, just chilling under the tree. Sorry, you can put your "presents" somewhere else, these seats are taken:

Dogs in reindeer antlers is a surprisingly robust category of Holiday Pet Pictures. Sabrina likes to wear hers low.

[Thanks, Graeme!]

Doc the Jack Russell has moved on to Doggie Heaven. Here now is a live shot of Doggie Heaven. Seems pretty nice. They got martinis and everything. 

[Thanks, Barb & Alan]

Another memorial photo, this one of Perla, who is just as good as any "present," better even. Unwrap Perla next!

[Thanks, Steve!]

Senior cat Georgette is enjoying her second Christmas in her new home. It's tough when your original owner dies, but Georgette seems to have gotten herself into a pretty sweet situation. Loving humans, tuna treats on demand. Could be worse.

[Thanks, John!]

And finally Tostada, I repeat Tostada. Tostada, everybody. It's Tostada. How is this animal real!? A wide-faced puffy ball of sleep. Cuteness personified. Ailurophobe healer. Mythical miniature yeti cat of the central west mountainscape. Voracious hunter, lethal cuddler. Tostada!

[Thanks, Barbara!]

That's it. See you next time.

Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld  

[Follow Rex Parker on BlueSky and Facebook and Letterboxd]
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Dodger's comeuppance / SUN 12-28-25 / Personification of darkness, in Greek myth / S.L.R. insert since the early 2000s / Full legislative assembly / Some summers, in brief / Uses an alternate account to play against easier opponents, in gamer-speak / Creatures formed from the fingers of the sea goddess Sedna, in Inuit myth / Blue-necked bird / Eschew the high road / Mythical figure undone by hubris

Constructor: Alex Eaton-Salners

Relative difficulty: Easy-Medium

THEME: "Off Broadway Musicals" — theme clues are titles of musicals, which must be taken literally in order to arrive at the correct answers:

Theme answers:

• 23A: Rock of Ages (ROSETTA STONE)
• 25A: How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying (NEPOTISM)
• 44A: A Class Act (FIELD TRIP)
• 47A: A Strange Loop (MOBIUS STRIP)
• 67A: A Little Night Music (LULLABY)
• 69A: Rent (SPLIT)
• 70A: A Chorus Line (REFRAIN)
• 88A: The Producers (PROLETARIAT)
• 91A: Into the Woods (OUTDOORSY)
• 111A: The Wiz (EINSTEIN)
• 113A: Mean Girls (AVERAGE JANES)

Word of the Day: BABUR (74D: Founder of the Mughal Empire) —

Babur (Persian: ببر, Persian: [bɑː.βuɾ]; 14 February 1483 – 26 December 1530; born Zahīr ud-Dīn Muhammad) was the founder of the Mughal Empire in the Indian subcontinent. He was a descendant of Timur and Genghis Khan through his father and mother respectively. He was also given the posthumous name of Firdaws Makani ('Dwelling in Paradise'). [...] Religiously, Babur started his life as a staunch Sunni Muslim, but he underwent significant evolution. Babur became more tolerant as he conquered new territories and grew older, allowing other religions to peacefully coexist in his empire and at his court. He also displayed a certain attraction to theology, poetry, geography, history, and biology—disciplines he promoted at his court—earning him a frequent association with representatives of the Timurid Renaissance. His religious and philosophical stances are characterized as humanistic. // Babur married several times. Notable among his children were Humayun, Kamran Mirza, Hindal Mirza, Masuma Sultan Begum, and the author Gulbadan Begum. Babur died in 1530 in Agra and Humayun succeeded him. Babur was first buried in Agra but, as per his wishes, his remains were moved to Kabul and reburied. He ranks as a national hero in Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan. Many of his poems have become popular folk songs. He wrote the Baburnama in Chaghatai Turkic; it was translated into Persian during the reign (1556–1605) of his grandson, the emperor Akbar. (wikipedia)

• • •

[10D: Kylo ___ of "Star Wars"]

"How to Make Musicals Boring." I guess if you like seeing names of musicals, this might hold some interest. I'll admit that a few of the hyperliteral theme answers were kinda funny (NEPOTISM, for instance, for How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying; or OUTDOORSY for Into the Woods— that was pretty good). But mostly this was a snooze, both themewise and fillwise. There's not really anything to it. There are presumably hundreds of musical titles to choose from, and you can take any of them literally, and imagine potential answers of all kinds of lengths, and then out of that set, pick a bunch that will fit symmetrically in a grid. The end. I don't even know what A Class Act or A Strange Loop are. If they're iconic musicals, they got past me, that's for sure. But that doesn't matter. No need to have actually heard of the musicals because all the clues are just ... literal. The title of this puzzle is "Off Broadway Musicals," but there's nothing really "Off" about these clues. They're literal. Maybe we, as solvers, are supposed to sense that something is "off," awry, amiss. I dunno. Whatever pun fun is supposed to be happening there is lost on me. 

I also don't know what AVERAGE JANES are. Is that like ... a female version of AVERAGE JOES? Shrug. The whole thing is a shrug. There's "gamer-speak" (ugh) (SMURFS) (48D: Uses an alternate account to play against easier opponents, in gamer-speak). Weapons of police brutality (TASER). CATTLE PEN. Nothing here I was terribly happy to see. And from REDD to PARTA to CIERA to ERMA to LSAT to IMA to AER to YENTE to ETOILE, the grid seemed to lean pretty into tired fill and crosswordese. Didn't really give us any new looks, anything to really admire. I don't see the appeal.

My path through this thing was bizarre. I just sort of ... drifted. Down, down, down. My first themer was SPLIT (which I didn't really recognize as a themer), and then I didn't see another one until I was at the bottom of the grid, with AVERAGE JANES. And from there I started climbing back up. Totally meandering. Not my normal M.O., but cross after cross was easy and I just followed where the crosses took me, and next thing I knew, I'd traversed the grid:

Only tough part was BABUR, a name that made its first NYTXW appearance back in August, but one that I clearly didn't fix firmly in my brain. Needed every single cross. Otherwise, the only toughness in the puzzle came in trying to figure out the theme answers. Some of them were ... unexpected. Stretches, even, you might say. PROLETARIAT was perhaps the most unlikely-seeming. I guess from a Marxist perspective, yes, the PROLETARIAT are the "producers" (of goods) who are exploited in a capitalist system by those who own the means of production. They receive less (in wages) than what their labor is actually worth, "the remainder appropriated by the bourgeoisie as profit" (wikipedia). In case you were wondering what that clue was about, that's what that clue was about. The other theme clues seem pretty straightforward. Not sure what is "of Ages" about the ROSETTA STONE. Is it "of Ages" because ... it's old? When I think of the ROSETTA STONE, I think of translation, not "Ages."

The Rosetta Stone is a stele of granodiorite inscribed with three versions of a decree issued in 196 BC during the Ptolemaic dynasty of Egypt, on behalf of King Ptolemy V Epiphanes. The top and middle texts are in Ancient Egyptian using hieroglyphic and Demotic scripts, respectively, while the bottom is in Ancient Greek. The decree has only minor differences across the three versions, making the Rosetta Stone key to deciphering the Egyptian scripts.

Nothing else seems hard to understand today. The "summers" in 81D: Some summers, in brief (CPAS) are people who do sums, that is, people who add numbers together. I completely forgot what the SD part of SD CARD stands for (6A: S.L.R. insert since the early 2000s). Nope, turns out I never knew. Seems to have originally stood for "Secure Digital." Even if I had known that, hard to imagine I'd enjoy seeing SDCARD in the grid. Despite SDCARDs having been in existence for over a quarter of a century, this is SDCARD's NYTXW debut. Definitely falls under the "Not All Debuts Are Good" category. Side note: SIM CARD has appeared in the NYTXW twice. For some reason, I don't mind it nearly as much.

Bullets:

• 20A: One sporting an article of apparel (WEARER) — well, it's a word, but the clue is completely unimaginative, which makes the word seem awkward. [One sporting an article apparel] is literally everyone in the clothed world. I'm a WEARER, you're a WEARER, he's a WEARER, she's a WEARER ... there's gotta be a more specific context for this word.

• 36A: Swallow something hook, line and sinker (EAT IT UP) — author Len Deighton has a series of spy novels from the '80s/'90s called the Hook, Line and Sinker Trilogy. Actor Bill Nighy recommended Deighton on his "ill-advised" podcast, so I've got the first of the series, Spy Hook, sitting next to my comfy chair here at home (thank you, public library!). If I can finish R.F. Kuang's Katabasis in the next few days, I might have time to cram Spy Hook in before New Year's. Otherwise, it's going to have to wait another week or two, since I'm starting the new year with Dickens (an idea stolen from my friend Levi Stahl). This year—my inaugural Dickens year—I'm going with Dombey & Son (1846-48). Got me a beat-up, orange-spined Penguin copy from the mid-late 20th century, since that is what my brain thinks Dickens books are supposed to look like (like they looked when I was in college).

• 56A: Full legislative assembly (PLENUM) — from the Latin for "ugly-looking and ugly-sounding word." Rhymes with "Blenheim," I assume. Or maybe "venom." Or maybe "screen 'em!" I dunno.
• 58A: Personification of darkness, in Greek myth (EREBUS) — I never learned about whoever this is. I learned the name from crosswords, possibly when I learned that the southernmost active volcano in the world is Mount EREBUS in Antarctica.
• 72A: Creatures formed from the fingers of the sea goddess Sedna, in Inuit myth (SEALS) — this clue is interesting! Teach me Inuit mythology, I'm into it. Maybe don't put SEDNA in the grid anytime soon, though. Baby steps. Here is a video of two SEALS at play.
• 99A: Eschew the high road (GO LOW) — a phrase popularized by Michelle Obama: "When they GO LOW, we go high"—how did that strategy work out? I forget.
• 16D: Cheep trills? (TWITTERS) — I like this clue's commitment to the pun. To both puns. The double pun. Puns should be ostentatious and or they should not exist at all.
• 17D: Dodger's comeuppance (IRS AUDIT) — so, a tax dodger. In fact, I had TAX AUDIT here at first.
• 45D: Mythical figure undone by hubris (ICARUS) — was it "overbearing pride" (i.e. "hubris") that caused ICARUS to fly too close to the sun? Or just regular old teenage disobedience?
• 56D: Blue Ribbon brand (PABST) — this reminds me: Blue Velvet is playing at the New Bev (in L.A.) next month, so if you live in the area you should definitely get out and see that on the big screen.

• 85D: Shell filling stations (TACO BARS) — I kinda want "shell-filling" to be hyphenated. Isn't it a compound adjective modifying "stations?" The clue wants us to think of gas stations, which you wouldn't, probably, if a hyphen was in there.
• 100D: Setting for Cole Porter's "Anything Goes" (OCEAN) — [sings parts of the song to himself trying to find the "OCEAN" part ... "hmmm hmmm glimpse of stocking ... silly gigolos ... etc."]. Turns out the clue is referring to the entire show (which takes place aboard an OCEAN liner), not just the song:

• 98D: Gathering of moles (INTEL) — thought this was going to be one of those dumb, made-up names for a group of animals, like ... a sequestering of moles, or something ridiculous like that. But instead it's the stuff that moles (i.e. long-term spies or sleeper agents) gather.
• 111A: Blue-necked bird (EMU) — they have blue necks? This is like learning a new OREO fact (that OREOs come in PIE form—not a new fact) (82D: Black-and-white desserts). 
• 37D: Short boxers, e.g. (PUPS) — as of right now, I have no idea what this means. I can see how [Young boxers, e.g.] might be PUPS, but "Short?" That ... is an expression I don't know. I guess young dogs are "short" compared to adult dogs, but no one talks that way. I thought for a bit that the answer was going to be PUGS, since "boxers" (the kind in a ring with gloves) are sometimes known slangily as "PUGS." But still, there's the matter of "short." Maybe it's underwear? Are there "short boxers" called PUPS? One of you will tell me how this clue works and then I'll come back here and add a note. But if the PUPS in question really are boxer puppies, I'm leaving this comment as is.

Speaking of PUPS (and other small animals)... time once again for 🌲🐈Holiday Pet Pics🐕🌲! Note: PLEASE DO NOT SEND ME ANY MORE PET PICS, I'M ALL FULL UP FOR THIS YEAR, thank you.

Let's start with a bunch of memorial pet pics. Here's the late great Zoe Bear, adopted at 8, lived to 18, clearly very very fond of Christmas. Look how fond.

[Thanks, Chris!]

Cleo has been a part of prior Holiday Pet Pics extravaganzas. Sadly, she left us this year and is now leaping into Christmas trees in Cat Heaven. They have Christmas trees in Cat Heaven, right? Of course they do. Stupid question.

[Cleo, pre-leap]
[Thanks, Nancy!]

Look at this sweet, saucer-eyed baby. Eighteen years is a hell of a life for a dog. R.I.P., Toby. 

Here's Rosie. Her person writes: "Rosie is white in the face now but still with us for another Christmas. She buried the neckwear outside years ago."

[Thanks, Claudia!]

Next up, Bella and Cammie. See if you can tell who enjoys Christmas more:

[Bella, who did not consent to being part of this Christmas ring-toss game]

[Cammie, seen her in a still from her one-woman Christmas show, Santa Paws!]
[Thanks, Steven!]

And finally Casper, who does not look like a ghost at all and wants nothing to do with your proposed "all-dog version of A Christmas Carol." Just let Casper sleep.

[Thanks, Brady!]

That's it. See you next time.

Signed, Rex Parker, King of CrossWorld

[Follow Rex Parker on BlueSky and Facebook and Letterboxd]
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